Wheel



mammal. 2Shets-Sheet 1. S. DI 7300111085 ,P. H. OOW-ARD.

WHEEL- Patented m. 28, 1896;

INVENTUEE g: li MQ )VITNEEEEE AN DREW BYGRAHAM PHOTOUTHQWASHINGTONJLC,

UNITED STATES I PATENT OFFICE.

STEFANO DI VECOHIO AND PEROIE H. OOXVARD, OF SAN FRANCISCO,

CALIFORNIA.

WHEEL.

' SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 553,796, dated January '28, 1896.

Application filed November 12,1894. $erial No. 528,578. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, STEFANO DI VEocHIo and PERCIE I-I. OOWARD,citizens of the United States, and residents of the city and county of San Francisco, State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in WVheels; and we do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

Our invention has for its object improvements in all that class of wheels that can be utilized for developing or transmitting power, and particularly water-wheels.

Referring to the drawings for a detailed description, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a water-wheel embodying our improvements. Fig. 2 is a central cross-sectional elevation of the same. Fig. 3 is a side elevation similar to Fig. 1, but with the wheel adapted to turn in a reverse direction. Fig. 4 is a sectional elevation taken from the right side of Fig. 2, looking toward the left, the View representing the wheel in an inoperative position. Fig. 5 is a side elevation of a wheel constructed on the same lines as that illustrated in the preceding views, but adapted to act upon the water instead of being acted upon by it. Fig. 6 is an edge view of the wheel shown at Fig. 5. Fig. 7 is a central cross-sectional elevation of the same.

The same letters of reference designate the same parts throughout the seven views.

A A represent parallel supports set upon a stone or concrete foundation B, laid at any convenient point at the bottom of a stream or under a body of moving water, as at 0, Figs. 1 to 4.. Between these supports is placed the wheel D, which is mounted so as to revolve in a vertical plane on a stationary shaft E set in bearings across the top of the supports. Floating supportssuch as boats, pontons, or rafts-n1ay also be used, if preferred.

The wheel D is composed of parallel disks, preferably two in number, arranged at a short distance apart and provided with radial slots (Z about midway between their center and and in, but not come out entirely. The outer end of each is also confined and works between a pair of transverse rollers cl running across the wheels periphery. The sliding in and out is effected by means of a cam G, located on the central part of the shaft E within the wheel, and having an endless peripheral groove g, formed by lateral flanges, in which enters a roller f carried by each slide at the inner end. About two-thirds of the cams groove is concentricwith the hub of the wheel at the point nearest the shaft, forming a circular segment coinciding with the outer ends of the radial slots d, while the remaining third projects beyond these slots and is composed of convergent eccentric portions and a shorter segment of a concentric circle extending outwardly to a point close to the rim of the wheel and following the same. The cam is fixed upon the shaft and moves only with it, both being normally stationary. Upon the wheel being set in motion, the slides which it carries are made to follow the groove of the cam as they revolve round and are entirely controlled by it in their inward and outward movement, preserving their position inside the wheel where the groove is nearest the hub and moving out and in where the groove makes its outward curve. The result is that out of the total number of slides three or so are projected simultaneously beyond the rim of the wheel to an equal extent, the others being drawn in between the sides. The cam being movable with the shaft, the slides can be thrust out or withdrawn at any desired pointfor instance,

in any of the positions illustrated in the drawings. The shaft and cam can be moved through the agency of a lever H or by any suitable mechanism. I

The practical application of this part of our invention is as follows: The wheel being ICU mounted in the middle of a stream, or in a channel where the tide flows out andin, or in any water-course, whether existing in the natural state or created by artificial means, the cam is set with its projecting end pointed in a direction opposite to that of the moving wa ter, so that the slides may be shot out in time to be caught by the current, as represented in Fig. 1, where the arrows indicate the direction of motion. The waterimpinges upon the slides as they descend into it and drives them forward until out of it, thereby l'GVOlling the wheel. New slides come out to replace the retreating ones as the wheel is revolved, and the movement is thus incessantly kept up. By reference to Fig. 1 it will be seen that the several slides occupy the best positions for effective work without loss of energy. They come out of the wheel only to be struck by the water and carried by it. Having received the full impact of the current, they immediately withdraw in almost a vertical plane without lifting the water. Once out in the air, they are safely housed within the wheel, where they offer the least resistance to the wind. Most of the energy received from the body of moving water can thus be saved and turned to good account.

Now were the current to move in an opposite directionas indicated in Fig. 3, for example-in a place where the tide runs in and out at regular intervals, the same work can be performed without reversing the position of the wheel by simply shifting the cam, as shown-that is to say, giving it about a quarter-turn backwardso that it may be directed against the current, as in the preceding case. The slides will then again be facing the moving water and the wheel will turn the other way. If, on the other hand, it is desired to stop the wheel, for some reason or other, the only thing to do is to move round the cam in such a way that the outgoing slides will project upwardly, as illustrated at Fig. 4, when the current, meeting with no resistance, will pass by the wheel without turning it.

The power gained by the wheel can be tran s mitted by the ordinary means, such as a pulley I, and employed to run machinery, dynamos, &c., or utilized in any desired manner.

Figs. 5, 6, and 7 illustrate a wheel on the same principle as the foregoing one, but of quite different application. It is the converse of the wheel above described in that it is designed to act upon the water instead of bein g acted upon by the water, although in general construction it is about the same. The main difference is that in the structure represented in Figs. 1 to 4 the wheel D revolves loosely upon the shaft E, whereas in that illustrated by Figs. 5 to 7 the shaft is made to revolve the wheel, which is fixed upon it, the intention being to transmit power to the wheel instead of receiving any from it. The same form of cam is employed, except that duplicates G G are used, one on each side-of the wheel, and they are movable independently of the shaft as well as of the wheel; but both these cams are normally stationary, as in the other case, and they move together in the same direction. The slides are the same, with only such a slight change in their rollers f as the duplication of the cam necessitates. Awheel of the latter description can be applied to many uses; but itis thought to be specially adaptable to the propulsion of boats, and therefore fit for use as a paddlewheel, as indicated in the last three views of .ihe drawings. In such case the wheel is mounted in the ordinary paddle-boxupon the end of the usual crank-shaft E. The cams are attached to the sides of the boat, as at J J, outside the wheels centers. Power being applied to the shaft and the wheel turned in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 5, with the cam set as illustrated, the slides come out consecutively to be immersed in the water, and thereby propel the boat, acting like the floats of the common paddle-wheel, with this difference, that they remain in the water only so long as they have useful work to accomplish, being withdrawn nearly perpendicularly after the effective stroke and lifted straight out of the water to give way to another slide without raising a swell. The wheel can be turned in the reverse direction for propelling the boat the opposite way, and the same results obtained, by shifting the cams in the manner already indicated for the waterwheel and illustrated in Fig. 3. The cam can be also shifted so as to alter the-course of the paddles and change the angle at which they are to enter and leave the water, as circumstances may require. The shifting can be eifected from the driving-engine by means of any suitable power connections, such as a rock-shaft K, links or connecting-rods L L, and suitable intermediate mechanism. (Not shown.) It will be observed that besides the advantage above noted of not raising the water uselessly upon completing their stroke the slides do not protrude upwardly and the wheel can therefore be placed in a smaller paddle-box than is possible with the ordinary paddle-wheel, or else a proportionally larger wheel can be used in a box of same size with obvious advantages.

Among other purposes which our improved wheel is applicable to might be cited the raising of water for various uses. It is thought that it could readily be made to perform the office of a pump or water-elevator by inclosin g it in a casing and providing the same with inlet and outlet pipes, so that flowing water might be introduced at one side and expelled at the other, the outgoing slides acting as so many buckets to raise the water to a predetermined point. It might likewise be turned into a water-engine by directing a stream of water under pressure against its outwardlyprojecting slides within the pipe.

Our wheel could also be attached to windmills and adapted as a wind-wheel by making slight changes and providing it with a suitable vane and the proper reversing-gear for one or more cams. It could also be worked by steam and turned into a steam-turbine, &c.

Having now described our invention, What we claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. The combination of a shaft, a Wheel mount-ed on said shaft, a cam mounted on the shaft within the wheel and inclosed thereby, means for shifting the cam, and slides carried by the wheel and engaging the internal cam.

2. The combination of a shaft, a wheel mounted loosely thereon, and provided With radial slots in its sides, a grooved cam rigidly mounted on the shaft Within the wheel, and slides carried by the Wheel and provided with guide-pins engaging the radial slots in the wheel and with additional guide-pins engaging the grooved cam.

3. The combination of the central shaft, a Wheel mounted loosely thereon and having radial slots in its sides, a grooved cam fixed on said shaft within the Wheel, means for rotating the shaft to shift the position of the cam relative to the wheel, slides mounted Within the Wheel, arms projecting inward from the slides and having lateral pins at their ends engaging the radial slots in the wheel, and guide-pins projecting centrally from the slides and engaging the groove in the cam.

4. The combination of the vertical supports, a shaft journaled on said supports, a Wheel mounted loosely on said shaft, slides carried by said wheel, a cam rigidly mounted on the shaft and engaging the slides to project the same from the wheel, and means for shifting the cam so as to regulate and vary the throw of the paddles.

In testimony whereof we affix our signatures in presence of two with esses.

STEFANO DI vncoi no. PEROIE H. COWARD.

\Vitnesses:

ERMENEGILDO DI VEocHIo, A. H. STE. MARIE.

TL. s] 

